Farmers in each district would be provided 5,000 seedlings of yellow and red apples according to lists prepared by district councils, the official said.

Moeen Khan, one of the recipients from Sharan area, said people of the province were poor and such assistance would help them grow commercially viable orchards. "With the plantation of apple trees, there will be greenery as well."

A farmer from Mata Khan district, Khan Mohammad, said that the recent dry spell in had affected yield of orchards. He urged the government and the international community to provide farmers with quality wheat seed and fertilisers.

An official at the provincial agriculture department, Obaid Khurasani, stressed the need for conducting workshops to help orchard owners learn modern techniques of boosting production.